Students from Emerson, Juanita and Lake Washington high schools and International Community School visited Kirkland City Hall to learn from local elected officials, tour the building and attend a luncheon at the Kirkland Chamber of Commerce.

There are only 19 University of Washington (UW) Presidential Scholar awards to go around in Washington state. This year, three of those awards went to students in Lake Washington School District (LWSD).

Kindergarten-5th Grade Highly Capable (K-5HC) Services support the most highly capable students in kindergarten through fifth grade. This program provides students enrichment in reading and/or math via 30 minute weekly small group sessions. General education teachers also receive support to enhance in-class differentiation for highly capable and high ability students.

During the first half of the 2018-19 school year, highly capable kindergarten students will be identified in reading and/or math. Services will begin sometime during the second half of the year.

Services will take place in the student’s neighborhood school during the regular school day. The K-5HC Facilitator/Teachers will provide resources and strategies to the student's classroom teacher to assist the teacher with accelerating instruction. K-5HC Facilitator/Teachers will provide math and/or reading enrichment services.

A student who participates in the K-5HC program in kindergarten will continue services through fifth grade unless the student qualifies for another highly capable program, such as Pull-out Quest or Full-time Quest.

Applicants who have a documented illness or a documented family emergency on their regularly scheduled test date must notify the Accelerated Programs office in writing before the testing session begins to be eligible for a makeup exam. Students who miss their regularly scheduled assessment and the makeup date will be withdrawn from the application process for the current school year. Note: Students who take makeup exams and qualify for services may have a delayed start date.

The makeup date for the November 3, 2018 CogAT is November 13, 2018.

The makeup date for the December 8, 2018 Iowa Assessments is December 19, 2018.

Nomination Process

Students are nominated for Highly Capable services by parents, staff or community members by filling out an application form. To nominate your child, parents must apply for their student to be considered for highly capable services. To apply, fill out the online application form. Please contact the Accelerated Programs Office at 425-936-1238 if you need a paper copy of the application or if you need an application in a language other than English.

If your student currently attends private school or home school, submit the Application Supplement in addition to completing the online application form. The Application Supplement will require parents to submit proof of residency and additional documentation as needed. All supplemental documents must be submitted to the Accelerated Programs Office by October 26, 2018.

Please note: Students must reside in the LWSD boundaries to apply for and participate in Highly Capable programs.

Scroll to the top of this page to find the Highly Capable Programs application form.

Screening Process

Kindergarten students are screened using the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) Screening Form to determine if further evaluations are needed. The typical score range to qualify for further assessment is Composite SAS 132-160 (98-99 Age Percentile Rank) on the CogAT. The CogAT provides a measure of a student’s verbal, quantitative and nonverbal learned reasoning abilities.

Typical score range of those students identified for services: At or above grade level standard.

Evidence of need for highly capable services is determined by a Multidisciplinary Selection Committee. Members of the committee include, at a minimum, a school psychologist, a teacher and the Director of Accelerated Programs. All decisions are based on the body of evidence to provide a clear picture of each student’s ability and to determine whether the data indicate a need for services beyond the scope of the general education classroom. No weights are assigned to data points. Private testing results are not accepted.

Placement

Kindergarten students who meet the eligibility criteria will be offered K-5HC Services. Parents must complete and return the K-5HC Permission for Placement form before services may begin. The anticipated start date for services is February 2019. A student who participates in the K-5HC program in kindergarten will continue services through fifth grade unless the student qualifies for and accepts placement in another highly capable program such as Pull-out Quest or Full-time Quest. Services are provided in the student’s LWSD home school.

Appeals Process

Highly Capable assessment criteria are applied equitably to all applicants. Appeals for reconsideration of students who have not met the assessment criteria are reviewed by the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee after notification of screening results and after notification of the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee placement decision. Appeals must be submitted to the Accelerated Programs Office in writing within 10 calendar days of notification of resultsusing the online LWSD Highly Capable Program Appeal Form. If you do not have access to a computer, please contact the Accelerated Programs Office at 425-936-1238 or email quest@lwsd.org. Appeals must be based upon a specific criteria related to the screening/testing conditions, or to a misapplication or miscalculation of the scores. The decision of the appeal review team is final.

The K-5HC services are designed to address the needs of the most highly capable elementary students in the district. One way to explore if this program would be a good fit for your student is to discuss your student’s academic abilities and performance with his or her teacher(s). Aside from high academic performance, here are some typical intellectual characteristics of highly capable children:

Unusually large vocabulary for their age

Ability to read earlier than most children

Greater comprehension of the subtleties of language

Longer attention span, persistence and intense concentration

Ability to learn basic skills more quickly and with less practice

Wide range of interests

Highly developed curiosity and a limitless supply of questions

Interest in experimenting and doing things differently

Tendency to put ideas together in ways that are unusual and not obvious (divergent thinking)

The K-5HC application must be submitted online. If you do not have access to the Internet or if you need an application in a language other than English, please contact the Accelerated Programs Office for an application form. If you need assistance uploading required documents, please contact the Accelerated Programs Office.

No. Applications are only accepted from students who reside within Lake Washington School District boundaries. To reside in the district means that the student lives at an address within the school district boundaries.

No. Applications are only accepted from students who currently reside in the district. If your student receives highly capable services in your current school district and you move to LWSD, you may apply for these services as a transfer student. See the transfer student information.

The Gifted Education Advisory Council (GEAC) is a good source of information about the highly capable program, especially from the perspective of parents. GEAC holds monthly general meetings, has a parent representative at each school with a Quest program, and maintains a GEAC Facebook page.

Students residing in LWSD and attending private schools may apply for and receive K-5HC services.

For students in Kindergarten, please upload the following documents when you complete the online application:

Proof of Residency – A current energy bill with your current address or a current mortgage statement can be used as proof of your address within our school district. These documents must be for the location where the student resides.

Proof of Age – a copy of your child’s passport or birth certificate

Please note that K-5HC services are LWSD school based and occur at various times during the day and during the week. Qualifying private school students would need to be present in their neighborhood LWSD school when the services are offered. The dates and times that services are offered may change over the course of the school year.

Appeals will not be considered for illness. Please email quest@lwsd.org before the test begins if your child is going to miss a scheduled test due to illness. Students who are not feeling well on the date of the original test are given one opportunity to test on the makeup date. Only one makeup date will be scheduled for each K-5HC test. The district sets the date for that makeup test. Applications for students who miss a regularly scheduled test and the makeup test will be closed.

Please email quest@lwsd.org before the test begins if your child is going to miss a scheduled test due to a documented family emergency. Your child will be given one opportunity to test on the makeup date. One makeup date only will be scheduled for each K-5HC test. The district sets the date for the makeup test. Applications for students who miss a regularly scheduled test and the makeup test will be closed.

For kindergarten students, the CogAT is used both to screen your child to see if further evaluation is recommended and to determine eligibility for highly capable services. After your child takes the CogAT, you will be notified by email if your child is eligible for further testing.

No. The district does not accept private testing results in place of the K-5HC identification process. All students must go through the district’s identification process to be eligible for K-5HC services.

K-5HC assessment criteria are applied equitably to all applicants. Appeals for reconsideration of students who have not met the criteria are reviewed by the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee after notification of screening results and after notification of the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee placement decision. Appeals must be submitted to the Accelerated Programs Office in writing within 10 calendar days of notification of results. Appeals must be based upon a specific criteria related to the screening/testing conditions, or to a misapplication or miscalculation of the scores. The decision of the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee is final and may not be challenged.

Parents of students participating in LWSD highly capable services may opt to withdraw from highly capable services at any time by submitting the Change of Service Request to the Accelerated Programs Office. Students will remain identified as highly capable. Students attending a LWSD school may receive differentiated instruction in their LWSD classroom. Students opting out of Full-time Quest may request participation in either Pull-out Quest or K-5HC services. Students opting out of Pull-out Quest may request participation in K-5HC services.

If parents wish to have their student return to highly capable services, they may submit a Change of Service Request. Students who have been away from highly capable services for less than 12 calendar months may resume the same level of highly capable services. For an absence of longer than 12 calendar months, parents may submit a written request to resume highly capable services and attach report card grades and evidence that the student has participated in accelerated learning; the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee will consider the request.

Parents of newly identified highly capable students may opt to decline services. Students will remain identified as highly capable. Students attending a LWSD school may receive differentiated instruction in their LWSD classroom. After declining highly capable services, parents who wish to begin previously offered services may complete a Change of Service Request. Students wishing to begin services within 12 calendar months of the original start date will be scheduled for the same level of service. Requests for highly capable services starting more than 12 calendar months after the original start date must be reviewed by the Multidisciplinary Selection Committee; submit a Change of Service Request along with report card data and documentation showing accelerated learning for review.

NOTES:

Students must reside in LWSD boundaries to participate in LWSD highly capable services.

School assignment and classroom placement are subject to change.

Change of Service Requests (with any supplemental documentation) should be emailed to quest@lwsd.org.

Please contact the Accelerated Programs Office by email at quest@lwsd.org or by phone at 425-936-1238 for more information.

Students who were enrolled in a highly capable or gifted program in their previous school may apply to receive Kindergarten-5th Grade Highly Capable (K-5HC) services when they transfer into LWSD. Transfer students are not automatically enrolled in the Highly Capable programs. Highly capable services are not an entitlement in Washington, as they are in some states.

Transfer application process for students in kindergarten

Submit proof of participation in a highly capable or gifted program (from school last attended) or submit proof of acceptance into a highly capable or gifted program within the last six months

Submit standardized achievement test results with national or international norms

Submit standardized ability test results with national or international norms

Submit proof of residency within LWSD boundaries

Meet the K-5HC screening and assessment eligibility criteria for admittance into the program

Notes:

Private testing outside of the student’s school district-sanctioned testing cannot be used to substitute for district testing

Letters of recommendation are not considered in the review

Transfer applications must be complete with all documentation submitted

Notification/placement process for kindergarten students

The Accelerated Programs Office will notify the parent(s)/guardian(s) of the student’s eligibility status after reviewing the applicant’s file. If the student is not eligible, he/she can apply and go through the district identification process in the fall.

The Lake Washington School District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, gender, marital status, creed, religion, honorably discharged veteran, military status, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, the presence of any sensory, mental or physical disability, or the use of a trained guide dog or service animal by a person with a disability, in its programs and activities and provides equal access to the Boy Scouts and other designated youth groups. Complete policy statement